We have a new cast of characters facing off against us in court: the federal
government.

Following last summer's DeCSS trial, 2600 was barred from publishing or
linking to sites that publish the DeCSS code. For the last six months this
website has continued to operate in spite of the restrictions. The MPAA's
victory so far has only been symbolic. Long before the MPAA ever
took action against 2600, DeCSS was already so widely distributed on the
Internet as to be irrevocable. Thus, we need only mention search engines
(Disney-owned search engines included) to point readers towards the
contraband.

In the meantime, the decision is being appealed to the 2nd Circuit federal
appeals court. Last month, the EFF filed a brief on our behalf. It was
followed by numerous amicus briefs by supporters of the appeal, including
the ACLU, the Digital Future Coalition, librarians, journalists, computer
scientists, law professors, educators, and cryptographers.

Whenever a case calls into question the constitutionality of a law in
federal court, the Department of Justice has the option of intervening for
the purposes of defending the law. Last week the government was admitted
to the case and filed its own brief in support of the DMCA in response to
our appeal. There is no question whose side they are on - not only do they
support the ban on linking, they go out of their way to engage in the same
name-baiting defamation as Judge Kaplan and the MPAA, describing the case
as being "really about computer hackers and the tools of digital
piracy."

By repeatedly pointing out that "defendants publish a magazine
for computer hackers" (as if that somehow had any bearing), it is made
painfully clear that the US Attorney would have the court believe that
hackers are somehow entitled to a lesser level of First Amendment
protection. The Department of Justice is representing the US Congress and
the American people in this attack. It's important that those in charge
be made aware of the repercussions not only of banning DeCSS but of banning
links as well. We've found that many legislators who took part in the
passing of the DMCA are clueless as to how it is affecting consumers'
rights. So, if you're in the United States, these are your tax dollars at work. Make
your voice heard and let Attorney General Ashcroft and your
representatives know how you feel.

The film studios have also filed their reply brief - oral arguments before
the court are expected to occur sometime in April.